


Housekeeper

by PuffReece



Category: Kuroko no Basuke | Kuroko's Basketball
Genre: Blackmail, Danger, F/M, Fluff, Friends to Lovers, Gangs, Love Triangles, Mild Gore, Multi, Sexual Harassment, Some Humor, good smelling doods
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2017-09-11
Updated: 2020-09-29
Packaged: 2021-03-05 20:27:17
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 6
Words: 16,904
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25651333
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/PuffReece/pseuds/PuffReece
Summary: After following your redheaded friend Kagami to japan, things went smoothly for you two. Until you got yourself into some trouble and need to gain some money. A fuckload of money.Good for you that an interesting job listened in the newspaper got your attention. A simple job of housekeeping while the owner is gone on vacation. Everything's smooth again, but then you discover that you and Kagami won't be the only one's in the household.
Relationships: Aomine Daiki/Reader, Kagami Taiga/Reader, Murasakibara Atsushi/Reader
Comments: 2
Kudos: 19





	1. Journey To Japan

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> My first fanfic, so please be gentle~

You were currently riding the train with your head leaning onto your friend's shoulder. You met the hot head Kagami exactly one year ago, when you transferred to his middle school. It was only one year of middle school left, but you two created a very close bonding in that time span. You could actually consider Kagami as one of your closest friends. Lounging around at one's house or playing basketball together were your common activities.

The redhead is holding his friendship to you in high regards and wouldn't want to lose it for the world. He loved how your calm personality could easily extinguish or dim any rage burning inside of him. Not like bucket of cold water pouring down on him, but more like a cold breeze that carries the heat away.

Looking down on you, he remembers the day you shyly stood in front of his class back in america to introduce yourself.

Already from the first second on he enjoyed regarding your face, though he would never dare to say it out loud, especially not to you in fear of you distancing yourself from him because of such 'romantic' thoughts if you could call them that. He was certain, that you only held friendly feelings for him, even tho deep, deep down he hopes it might change one day.

The teacher made you sit in the only available spot in the classroom and he's still damn grateful to this day, that it was the one right next to him. Nodding your head, you made your way to the back of the room, sitting down in your place.

Kagami would occassionally sneak glances at you during the lesson, that was until one time he did not only see your profile, but gazed into deep [e/c] coloured eyes. He was so entranced that he didn't even notice that he was actually staring for a moment or two.

Or three.

But you in your calm way just sent a smile at him, which got him out of his trance-like state and to quickly revert his sight back on the blackboard. In this moment he swore that he just destroyed any possibility of you liking him. Since he didn't even smile back.

When class ended and the bell for lunchtime rang, the boy quickly gathered his belongings and hurried out of the room to avoid further interactions with you.

Kagami was sitting at a table in the cafeteria alone like usually, since eyeryone was intimidated by his resting bitchface and often tried to avoid him. When he saw you coming in, his eyes followed you to the waiting line. As it was your turn to pay with the paying card, you had slight problems, not knowing how this concept of paying works cause there was only cash payment at your old school. Another student came to your help and you smiled gratefully at him. The red head didn't like how the male that helped you gazed after you when you left to find a place to eat. He was so focused on the male that he did not notice the girl standing at his table. That was until he heard a voice speak up.

''Hello, do you mind if I sit here?''

Looking in the direction of the noise he nearly choked on his food as he recognized you asking for permission to sit down. You were still standing and pointing at the place right opposite from him.

''Ahem..sure..'' he coughed out, ears turning slightly red.

''Thank you..uh, Taiga was it?''

''Yes, yes..''

He was surprised that you already knew his name. He doesn't even remember yours, because he was so busy studying your pretty face. Lucky for him, you brought out your timetable to ask him something about the classes and where to find them. His eyes where stuck on the top left corner of the page where your name stood

_(y/n), (l/n). So that's her name.._

“...classes?”

Coming back from zoning out he returns his gaze to you and sees you looking at him expectantly.

“Uhh, sorry didn't quite catch that..”

You let out a giggle and he thought about what a beautiful sound it was.

“I wanted to now what your classes are, so we can look if we have any together.”

“ah yes right, let me see.. well actually every class except for math and geography.”

“Aw how nice, I'm looking forward to having classes with you Taiga.” You smiled at him.

He returned that smile wondering why fate was being so generous to him all of a sudden.

When he comes back to reality he notices you had fallen asleep, the contact of your head on his shoulder sending a comfortable tingling trough his tricep.

Damn, he really feels lucky to be able to know you this good.

Suddenly you start to stir and your eyes flutter open, your gaze in the direction of the window.

''You lil sleepyhead.''

You turn your head to look up at your giant like friend compared to you and grin cheekily.

''Sorry, I hope my head was not too heavy..”

“Well yea, my whole arm fell asleep due to that thick skull of yours.” He jokes.

“Aw and here I thought you were a strong, grown ass boy.”

“Oi. I prefer grown ass _man_ ”

“yea yea alright.” you dismiss him with a hand wave and a smile.

Kagami returns it and you turn your face to the window to look at the passing scenery. You wonder how your time in japan would be.

When you caught wind about Kagamis plans of traveling to japan and playing basketball there, your thoughts ran haywire for a minute or so. You were deeply mad with your dear friend and didn't speak to him for a few days. You felt betrayed and somehow left behind. It wasn't even him that told you, it was that you heard it from a classmate!

But after days of ignoring him your decision had been made. You were going with Kagami.

The redhead was surely happy that you decided to talk to him again but was also taken aback by your proposal (or rather announcement) of following him to japan. He didn't want you to leave your family behind just because of him. But there was no change in mind for you. Though the part of convincing your parents was not that simple but you stood your ground (with dem little tricks like the kicked puppy eyes).

So here you were. On a train through japan.

With a small smile on your lips, your gaze abandoned the passing fields and lifted up to the sky.

_Life is good.._

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Well first part done.
> 
> Please don't go nuts, but it'll take some while until Aomine kicks in.
> 
> Cya ♥


	2. Longing

As the train arrives in Tokyo, you two gather your suitcases from above your heads and get outside. Everything is quite busy and hectic so out of accident you bump into a middle aged man. He already looked really grumpy and that little incident seemed to have ticked him off.

“Watch where ya goin' you piece of trash!”

_Well damn, someone's pissed.._

You don't mind the insult much and ignore the grump, cause you always tend to stay out of trouble but as you're going to move further through the crowd you notice that Kagami is not following you.

So you look back to see where he's at, and daminam if looks could kill, that ol' Mr. Grumpypants wouldn't be able to see the sunrise ever again. Kagami looks at him with such fire burning in his red orbs, that it could burn the man down to ashes right on the spot.

The man seems to feel the heat of kagamis intense stare and turns to look at him, but as his eyes meet with red flaming ones he literally starts to pale. Not wanting this to get violent you reach out to your hot tempered friend and tug at his hand to get his attention away from the situation.

The feeling of your skin against his seems to snap him out of it and his gaze wonders to your face as the fire diminishes in his eyes. You simply give him a reassuring smile and hand squeeze and continue to tug him further through the crowd, out of the train station. Kagami follows you without a complain but continues to look back at the gruff man to secretly send him glares.

It wasn't a rare occurrence that Kagami is acting really protective of you when someone seemed to cause you trouble or talk bad about you. This loyalty is something you really cherish in your friendship with him but you also hope that it wouldn't always turn into a kind of tense situation like that.

When the two of you get out of the station, the hot head is still grumbling on about “that ol' mc grampsy” who should “get that stick out of his ass”.

When you two finally regained personal space you decided to let go of Kagami.

As the warmth of your hand leaves his, a hint of disappointment flashes across Kagamis face but it disappears as quickly as it came so you don't notice it.

“I think we should head to the hotel and just chill for the rest of the day and tomorrow we could search for an apartment for rent, alrighty?” You look at your friend, waiting for an answer.

“Alrighty.”

The deep and monotone voice of him not matching that word at all makes you laugh out quietly, so you go on with a smile still on your face not noticing that a black clad man is fast walking towards you. He seemed troubled and did not notice you either so you two ran into each other. The man and you both fall to the ground and let go of your bags.

“Damn what's with me today crashing with strangers..” You mumble.

As Kagami helps you up the stranger grumbles something under his breath and scrambles to his feet to continue on his way with his bag.

“I wonder the same ____. If you're in need of body contact, I'm right here you know, no need to pounce random people.” Kagami said.

“Oh come on, I'm not doing this on purpose.” You sigh, "besides, that guy came out of nowhere."

“I'm so convinced now.”

“Aw man, just shut up and lets go, I'm a bit tired from the journey.”

You pout and continue on your way after checking for random passer-by that you could possibly ran into. As you pass the redhead he keeps following you with his eyes, just like he always does, keeping out a watchful eye for his beloved friend.

_Yea, just a friend.._

“Alright, lets go.”

Kagami lets out a small sigh as to not to alert you but still keeps a hint of longing in his red orbs as he watches your back while you walk in front of him.

__________, you don't know how much I think about just being able to hold you in my arms._


	3. Sneak Thief

As you keep walking the streets become less crowded until there are just cars passing by occasionally.

You glance back to your friend noticing that slight glum look in his eyes as he looks down the streets.

“You okay Taiga?”

He looks at you and just like that, the look is gone.

“Yes, I was just.. thinking about that guy you walked into. He seemed shady.”

Kagami answers trotting up to walk beside you.

You feel at ease hearing that, but can’t shake the feeling off that there was more behind that look he had just now. But you decide not to press on it.

“Yeah, strange that he didn’t even say anything. Seemed like he was in a hurry.” You nod in approval.

The evening air hangs lightly around you two with a slight breeze rustling the leaves above you. As you glance at Kagami you can’t help admire how the sunsets rays reflect in his eyes, making them glow warmly. You feel very lucky having Kagami as a friend, he makes you feel protected.

Sure he does have a resting bitch face but deep down he has such a fragile heart.

That’s one of the reasons you sat next to him in the cafeteria that day. It made you uneasy to go to the people huddled in groups, they were already having their cliques. And you always knew not to judge a book by its cover, so you stuck to him and in the end it was worth it.

_It still is.._

You realize that you were staring for quite some time as Kagami notices and lifts an eyebrow at you. You quickly revert your gaze and look forward.

_I shouldn’t-_

Your eyes light up as you see a basketball court.

“Hey look Taiga! Let’s have just one game, it’s been too long!” You say running towards the partly fenced field.

Kagamis eyes follow you and he just shakes his head smiling.

“Didn’t you say you were tired?”

He gets onto the court just as you get your hair out of your face.

“Yea nah, one game’s in it.”

Your bag already lies carelessly thrown next to the side bench, as Kagami puts his next to yours.

“Here lemme help you.” He hears you say as you come towards him with a hair band.

“Sure if you can reach up that high.”

You pout as he says that without making any move to get down to you. Kagami smirks at you victoriously until a shit eating grin appears on your face.

“I don’t like that glint in your eyes.”

His smirk disappears as he watches you climb on the bench to look him in the eye and exclaim loudly:

“Trust fall!”

He does not have any time to think as you throw your hands in the air and let yourself fall backwards.

You feel yourself fall but soon the two strong arms of your friend envelope you as he needed to go down on his knees to make your landing soft.

“Aww you got mee~”

The redhead has a worried face as you comb through his soft hair to get it into a bun.

“Don’t do things like that ______…”

You blink at his soft tone and take your hands down.

“What if I wouldn't have gotten you in time?”

“Then it would’ve been my own fault. Besides I know you would never let that happen.” You look at him through your eyelashes.

Kagami blinks at that and a small blush starts to spread from his nose. None of you says anything as you kept each others gazes.

A breeze comes up again and makes Kagamis Necklace swing slightly as it glints in the evening sun.

You use that moment to accomplish your mission of putting Kagamis hair in a bun. Atleast as much as it was possible.

“Hah, now you’re good to play.”

The redhead sighs defeated and stands up helping you up as well.

With the ball in his hand he walks to the center dribbling it occasionally.

“Since you’re tired I’ll go easy on-”

You zoom past him snatching the ball.

Jumping high you dunk it into the basket.

“..you.”

You stand there victoriously looking him in the eyes as a fire ignites in them.

He rushes forward as you start running as well. You try to go in a circle to land another point but he gains control of the ball. You manage to get in front of him but he easily sidesteps you. Kagami jumps for a dunk but you jump in front of him intercepting it.

Your move makes him lose his balance as a surprised expression comes across his face and you two fall down on the ground.

You open your eyes and gaze up into Kagamis while his upper body is held by his elbows millimeters from crushing you.

“You have to say it first if plan to do a trustfall.”

Kagami laughs at that and you feel the puff of air on your face.

_He’s so close. And.. am I blushing?_

“Okok, get off me plea-”

Suddenly you see a silhouette swoop by the bench behind Kagami grabbing your bag and running off.

“No, he got my bag!”

You two jump up at that with Kagami starting to follow the stranger right away. Your first thought made you tailing them as well, but as you remembert and looked towards the other luggage decided against it.

“Better not give anymore opportunities.” You say glancing around suspectingly.

Sighing you sit down on the bench and wait for Kagami to come back. You keep your gaze to the ground and wait for your blush to calm down.

_What was that now, I don’t feel anything else towards Taiga but friendshiply stuff, or do I?_

You sigh again.

_My favorite pullover was in that bag.._

You think back to the time you and Kagami went to the beach. The weather was hot on that day, so you did not grab a jacket but as the evening came it became colder and colder. On the bus ride back home you were visibly shaking, so your selfless friend took off his grey sweater and handed it to you. It still held his warmth as you put it on. You kept it on that night going to bed enjoying that it still smelled of him.

_I’m stupid._

You come back from the memory as two pairs of trainers step into your field of vision. You start to look up

and up

and up

until you reach their owner who wears a lazy expression while he looks down on you.

_Damn he’s a skyscraper._

“Uhm, hello..”

He was munching on some sweets he was holding in one of his hands. Stuck under his other arm was a basketball. Your eyes shine at that.

“You play basketball?”

He simply nods at your question.

_Sure is talkative. But we won’t start judging now _____._

“But did you come here to play all by yourself?”

He swallows his bite to answer. “Well, usually there’s someone here to play with. And you’re here alone as well aren’t you?”

“Got me there. But actually no I didn’t come here by myself. I was with a friend of mine but my bag got stolen so my friend went after the thief.”

The tall boy blinks at your sad face and crouches down to your level. He uses a knuckle to brush hair out of your face and holds his package of sweets in front of you.

You look into his gentle eyes and smile because of his kind offer. It seemed to be some kind of soft candy. As you taste it you feel that it leaves a slight prickling feeling on your tongue. The boy smiles at your surprised face and takes another piece for himself.

“That’s so strange and awesome!” You open your mouth and actually hear the prickling sound.

“You ‘ear tha ‘oo?” You look at him with shining eyes.

He lets out a deep chuckle and nods, letting his mouth hang open slightly as well.

“Yea, I can hear it!” you giggle.

“Thank you, I need to get me my own package of that.”

He straightens at that and puts the bag beside you on the bench.

“No worries..”

“What is your name by the way? I’m (y/n) (l/n).”

“(l/n)..” He murmurs as he tests your name. “You’re not from Japan are you?”

“Yes that’s why you don’t need to call me by my last name, I mean if it’s ok with you.”

“If so, then you can call me Atsushi.”

You smile up at him at that. “you wanna play a round 1 on 1 with me, Atsushi?”

“Sure _____-chin.”

_____-chin? How cute._


	4. Me Made New Frien

"Ne _______-chin~ Do you have a hair band? Seems like I forgot mine at home."

"Yea I always got a spare one on my wris-"

As you look at your bare wrist you remember that you used the band to tame Kagamis hair. The thought of Kagami tailing the thief with the bun bouncing about on his head makes you giggle. Mura gives you a confused stare at that and you try to regain your composure by continuing, "Sorry, I forgot that I lend it to my friend." You look up at his hair at that and only now notice the hair color. 

_That's quite an unusual color, but I like it._

As you stare at the gentle giant he starts to look around with the slightest blush. "It's alright, I'll be fine." He uses one of his arms to reach a hand into his hair and ruffle through it for a bit.

You catch yourself staring at someone for the second time this day and shake your head slightly.

_Great first impression to a stranger.._

To get out of this situation you started the game by slamming the ball out from under Muras other arm, just like you did it with Kagami before.

_Taking initiative today, aye_

You smirk at your successful thievery, and run for the nearest basket but as you make your way to dunk it and score your first point you hear loud stomping behind you. When you looked back to see from which side Mura would be getting to you he is already right in front of you.

_Damn these long legs, he can make much bigger strides with them than I can._

The speed you are running at causes you to nearly smash against him. You balance your body weight to your right side to give a misleading hint in hopes he goes into the wrong direction. You watch his towery frame tip over the slightest to his left side. You deem it enough to rush past his right side and have another try to make a dash for the basket. 

**Pat**

_Shit._

You look back at Murasakibara as he is almost across the field dribbling the ball to the other basket.

_No you won't._

You push off the ground and sprint towards the purple haired boy. You see the surprise in his face as you reach him before he gets to the basket and he changes his stance as he goes for a three pointer. But you use your current speed to jump in front of him intercepting a toss for a second time this day. 

That's what you've been known for back in your school in the states. Speed and high jumps.

Muras eyes start to sparkle as he sees you flying past right in front of his face. You definetly awakened something in him because the unbothered expression that you thought was constant on his face disappears and his eyes become more focused.

The gleam in his eyes makes you shiver in anticipation as you make a run for another try to dunk the ball.

You both go back and forth like that, nobody scoring a point for a few minutes. But as the time passes by you feel more and more energy leaving you. The game ends with a dunk from Mura as you fail to jump high enough to reach the height of the basket.

The purple haired giant looks you over as you sit on the ground out of breath, shoulders rising and falling steadily.

"You are a good player ______-chin."

You turn your head to look up at him but notice that he had sat down beside you. You can't help the feeling of pride that surges through you every time someone comments on your performance like that. You trained hard to get to this after all.

"Thank you, you are also a worthy opponent." you grin back at him.

He smiles at you but it turns into a smaller smile after a few seconds.

"I'm gonna tell you something. I came here not because I hoped that someone would be here to play with me but because I saw you standing here from my bedroom window and I suddenly felt like playing. That is unusual for me. I have lost motivation to play some time ago.." Muras eyes have clouded over slightly as he held a distant stare.

You are glad that he does not look at you so he won't see all the emotions flashing across your face. You feel surprised and a bit embarrassed but most of all does it touch you that you could bring back the fun of basketball to him.

"I'm glad you were having fun playing again. You know, I just got here to Japan so I don't know a lot of people around. Let's exchange phone numbers so we can play sometime again in the future."

He returns his gaze back to your face and the smile on his face grows in size again the hazy look in his eyes disappearing. 

"That'd be nice."

As you stand by the bench and give each other your numbers you hear the soft tapping of someone walking in your direction. You turn around to see Kagami making his way towards you with slumped shoulders. You already know what that meant so you decide to not ask him about how the pursuit of the thief went.

"I'm sorry _______.. I couldn't-"

You hug him to tell him non verbally that it's okay. He feels very warm, he has probably been running for the whole time in order to catch the thieve. The hug seems to get him out of his saddened daze. When you let go of him, Kagami looks at Murasakibara with a surprised expression. As you look back at the purple haired giant you see a hint of amusement in his eyes, only then you remembered that Kagami still had his hair up with the band you put there earlier, now having a lot more strands of hair falling loosely out of the bun but other than that it looked still pretty neat. The surprise in Kagamis eyes turns to confusion when you start to shake from silent laughter still against his side.

"I love your hairstyle." Realization starts to sink in as Kagami reaches for the hairband in his hair and pulls it off. You take it from him and pull it over your hand again to its rightful spot and decide to fill him in on how you came to play basketball with the purple haired boy.

While hearing the explanation your hotheaded friend releases the tension in his jaw that you barely noticed before "Well thank you for keeping her company, Murasakibara was it?"

Mura gives you a side glance but moves his gaze back to Kagami "Atsushi is fine.."

He gives a small smile at that and turns around with a small wave, his basketball tucked back into place under his other arm. "See you around ________-chin, Kagami."

You smile at that and give a small wave as well even though his back was to you.

Kagami gives a questioning look which you shoot right back at him.

" 'sup with that face?"

"Already making friends on first name basis?" The expression on his face tells you that it bothers him the slightest bit. 

"I'm just not accustomed to be called by my surname. It creates such a big barrier and I don't like that." You give a small pout to emphasize your upsetness. 

"Hey ok-ok, I was joking. I know what you mean. It creates some kind of superficiality, but it's also in order to pay respect to the people that live here."

You give a nod at that "ya I know that." huffing you walk to the bench to get what was left of your luggage. As you pick up your small backpack you notice an abandoned sweets package sitting on the bench. Your first reaction is to swirl around to the direction Mura went when he said his goodbyes, but as you look down the street he walked into you can't see him anywhere. You feel your phone vibrate in your pocket at that and as you check it a message from your newly made friend is displayed on your screen.

_**Purplelicious** : -You can have the leftover package of sweets._

You smile and look up trying to spot a house from which Murasakibara might have seen you earlier.

_Is he watching right now?_

You can't make out any purple head in the windows up the hill that face the basketball court so you just write your thanks to him and put the sweets in your backpack along with your phone.

Set with the only thing that is left of your luggage on your back you look at Kagami expectantly.

"You ready to go?"

"Sure, ______-chin." He gives a small laugh at the annoyed face you throw at him.

You just start walking as an idea comes to your mind, "I know you wanted to book a hotelroom but you know what? I'm in for a night in a hostel. Back to the backpacker lifestyle."

Kagami gives you a questioning glance, "You've been backpacking? When?" 

"It was right before I transferred to your school. I had two months of time until the new school year started so I used that time to be on my own for a bit." You put your hands behind your head and smile as you reminisce about your trip. You miss the slight offended look in Kagamis eyes as he looks at you.

He gives a huff, "And you didn't tell me about it?"

You notice the tone in his voice and turn your head over to him as you lower your arms. Seeing him looking forward with slumped shoulders makes you feel bad about not telling him. You get closer to him and hug his right arm to yourself to lean your head on his upper arm. 

"I'm sorry Taiga.."

The contact of your head on his shoulder sends the same tingly feeling up Kagamis muscles as before when you fell asleep on him on the train. The redhead glances at you and pats your hair.

"It's alright I'm not mad really. You can always tell me about it when we got enough time. I want all the details." He smirks down at you and you give an apologetic smile in return.

As you walk you notice just how tired you really are now, "Has its perks to have to carry less now with fewer bags."

Kagami gives a laugh at that, "Good to see that you are as optimistic as ever."

The red head looks at you and frees his arm from your hold to pull the hairband out of your hair. You give him a quizzical look but he just gives a small smile in return.

"I like you with your hair down.." you barely hear him rumble.

Your heart jumps at that and you try to cover your face with your hair so he doesn't notice it changing color. But an idea comes to your mind and you decide to be sly and get back at him for making fun of Murasakibaras nickname for you, "So you don't like me with my hear up?" you keep your head down.

"Wha- no-"

" _ **gasp**_ , you hate me when I have my hair up and think I'm ugly, don't you?" you put your hand over your chest where your heart's supposed to be and give him a fake brokenhearted look. Internally you were laughing at Kagamis terrified expression and the flailing around with his arms, unsure of what to do. You can not keep your play up any longer and start cackling silently. 

The redhead pauses at that and narrows his eyes at you. A shriek lefts your mouth as you feel yourself being picked up and thrown over a well build shoulder.

"Wah let me down!" You're still laughing and try to hold your upperbody up by pressing your hands into Kagamis backside and blush when you feel strong muscles moving against your palm. It made you realize just how strong your friend actually is.

How can he be holding me plus my backpack and his own bag at his hip?

Kagami just keeps walking down the street no sign of exhaustion showing. He hears your voice from behind him.

"Aye frien, plis let me down."

He gives a chuckle and let's you loose for a bit making you slide in the direction your head is hanging.

"No not like that!"

Kagami gives a deep laughter at that. You would appreciate his happiness when your life wouldn't be on the line right now. As you push yourself up one more time you spot a tree branch right above you two. With a whimsical smile you reach for it to get a tight grip to hoist yourself up into the tree. Because of his laughter, Kagami lets go of you quite easyly but tries to get his grip back on you but he's too late. As he turns around he sees you on the tree branch dangling your legs and wearing a mischievous smile.

The redhead just closes his eyes shakes his head. But he opens them as soon as he hears you speak up.

"Hey Taiga."

He lifts his gaze up to the tree red eyes focusing on your form.

"Trustfall."

And just like that you let yourself fall backwards with closed eyes knowing that your friend has your back.

And as expected you land safely in two strong arms. With your eyes still closed a witty remark makes its way to your lips but you stop in an instant as your nose is hit by the smell of cologne. Kagami doesn't wear perfume.

_The fu-_

Your eyes shoot open.

_The ocean._

Deep blue eyes look back at you with a hint of surprise and annoyance and.. some other emotion you can not decipher swirling around in them. The witty remark is gone and your mind blank. 

_This.. is not Taiga..?_

Reality comes back to you as you are let down to the ground rather roughly. Kagami stands beside you within a second steadying you and looking you over.

_Where did he come from?_

After regaining your balance you look around to catch the sight of a man with dark blue hair walking away from you two. 

Out of reflex you call after him, "H-Hey!"

He does not seem to be bothered by your call but you continue, "Thank you!"

He turns his head around at that regarding your face while wearing an unidentified expression. The bluenette shifts his gaze from you to Kagami and the look in his eyes changes to a taunting one.

"Somebody had to come and save you from falling."

"I would have gotten her to the ground just fine!" Kagami exclaimed. You look towards your hothead to see him tense with his fists slightly clenched at his sides. You decide to get him down from his angry trip and walk in front of him to press a finger on the knit between his eyebrows. 

He blinks at that, eyes focusing on you and softening. 

"Don't work yourself up over that, I know you would have caught me."

He lets out a sigh and you look towards the horizon to where the mysterious man disappeared to. The sun was already gone and the air got a lot colder already. 

"It's getting late, let's get to the hostel now."

Kagami gave a grunt in approval and walked beside you. You both seemed to be in deep thoughts after that incident neither of you talking.

_He smelled nice.._

You shake your head trying to rid your thoughts of a stranger you are probably never going to meet again.

You took that moment to have a look around and take in the display right in front of you. To your right the last sun rays disappear behind the mountains painting the sky in a beautiful mixture of pink and purple that blends over into a dark rich blue to the east. The moon was already out to be seen accompanied by a few early stars. You enjoyed these displays of light and color in the evening.

As you look ahead you see the shape of the hostel coming up at the end of the street.

When you get closer to the hostel you notice that it actually makes a lot cleaner impression than what you are used to. On the outside at least. 

"Riverside Hostel. Seems cozy, doesn't it?"

You look up at Kagami for his reaction. He looks the front of the house over and gives a nod, strands of his hear falling in his face. 

"looks nice, let's get inside." He gives you a tired smile. As he moves to go inside you catch his arm and stop him. He looks back at you only to sweatdrop as you are wearing your signature grin.

"What crazy idea has come to your mind now?"

Your eyes glint and you let out a small cackle, "You go in alone and book only one bed. I'll be coming right after you just text me the room number."

Kagami gives you a skeptical look, "Why should we-"

"We did this all the time, that's how we saved a lot of money." The grin on your face widens at that.

Kagami, too tired to argue now, goes in and does as you told him to.

After checking in and going to the room Kagami send you a text with the room number.

_**Tigger** : -Room 28_

_**smol human** : -*gushes* Your birthdate!_

Kagami smiles at the screen. You instantly thinking of his birthday causes a warm feeling to spread in his chest. Not even he himself thought about the numbers relating to his birthday. He decided to wait for you to not disturb any potentially sleeping roommates.

Outside you readied yourself to go in. After a small prep talk and some jumping around you felt ready. 

_Just look confident._

You went through the sliding doors striding in determined steps down the entrance hall. The reception is to your left, the hallway to the rooms further down the hall. So now to decide if you should look at the receptionist or not. Eye contact could give away hints of uncertainty but you would normally greet the person standing behind the counter regardless of legal or illegal missions you find yourself on. So you go for the first option and send a smile towards the receptionist. 

A timid looking guy seeming to be a couple years younger than you lifts his gaze to you. His ginger hair falls in cute locks around his freckle-kissed face.

_Right option._

"Hello~"

_Simple hello, not too formal like a 'good evening' would be, as not to impose that this establishment is unknown to you._

"Uh hello.."

Keeping your composure you stride past the counter until you hear the boy speak up again.

"Excuse me"

_Uh-oh, ok here it comes._

"Um, do you have a valid reservation in here, miss?"

You stop and turn around, keeping a straight face, "Would you really believe that a girl travels around with nothing but a backpack which is as small as this one?" You point to the bag on your shoulders at that and give the poor boy a quizzical look.

The ginger boy chuckles nervously, "O-Oh, I didn't think this over, I'm sorry for the disturbance.." He looks away scratching his cheek.

You use that opening for a quick goodbye and wish the receptionist a goodnight before he could keep the conversation going any further.

As you turn the corner you saw your friend still standing in front of the door to your room, leaning on the wall opposite of it with closed eyes. Making your way over to him you hear slight snoring. You stifle a laugh.

_He fell asleep standing?_

You reach for his upper arm making him startle and open his eyes as they regain focus and slide to your face. God he looks tired.

_He sprinted after that thief after all for like half an hour._

"Ready to go to bed?" he was already reaching for the door handle, holding the magnetic card in his other hand. But you stopped him again.

"Wait before we bother the others inside, I will need a T-shirt from you and maybe, uh, a pair of boxers." You look to the side as Kagami turns red by the ears, "But why?" but his eyes widen in realization. 

"Oh."

You look back up at him still holding him by the fabric of his shirt.

"You don't have any spare closing in your bag?"

"None beside a pair of emergency panties."

Kagami lets out a silent laugh at that, but puts his bag beside him on the ground to pull out some red and black checked boxers and a black T-shirt. You take them gratefully and tuck them under your arm as you snatch the card from Kagamis hand to avoid looking at him.

The sensor on the door gives a short beep and click sound. You press down the door handle and walk into the dark room. Steady breathing and occasional soft snoring greets you as you wander into the dark with only your phone screen as a light source. You find the only unoccupied bed in the room, glad to see that it's not a bunk bed.

Looking back you see another phone screen hovering in the dark walking towards you. You and Kagami both turn off your screens to change into your sleeping clothes in the dark. While pulling your shirt off you managed to somehow loose your balance making a small welp sound as Kagami grips you at your shoulders. You feel the warmth of his body directly in front of you making you blush.

_Is he shirtless as well?_

"Careful." The small air puffs of his whisper hit the bare skin of your chest and it feels like his head is a lot closer to you than normal. You nod back at him but remember he can't see you. "Yes."

He lets you go at that, making sure that you hold your balance. You swiftly pull Kagamis shirt over your head and crawl onto the bed. After you settled in and waited for a while you search around for your phone. When you find it you turn on the screen and look into the room. No sign of your redheaded friend.

You narrow your eyes and crawl to the edge of the bed to look over it. There he laid his head on his bag and his big beach towel draped over him.

_dumbass._

" _ ***psst***_ "

Kagami opens an eye at that but all he could see was your screen flying above him.

"get your ass up here."

"No-"

"That was not an offer."

He seems unfazed by your threatening tone and just closes his eye again. You pout and let yourself fall next to him on the ground at that. Now you got his full attention with both of his eyes open.

"Then we're both sleeping down here, I guess." Someone in the room starts to stir making you feel kind of bad for the commotion you were causing. Kagami just shakes his head at you sitting up and motioning for you to go back into the bed but you shake your head back at him with a determined glint in your eyes. 

The redhead sighs and changes into a kneeling position. Before you could object he lifts you up and puts you on the bed and making you scoot over. You do as told and settle in happily as he lies down next to you. 

"Like I said, you have a thick skull.", you hear him rumble as he faces you. You just smirk at that and turn your back to him. He lets out a tired yawn "G'night".

"ni-night Taiga." You give a yawn in return.

It does not take long for Kagami to fall asleep so you soon start feeling steady breaths hitting your neck. The everlasting warmth of Kagamis body slowly crawls over to your side of the bed as if he was a heater that emanates it's soothing warm waves against your backside. You feel your face heating up as well but you are well aware that this is not caused by an external source.

_just go to sleep stupid._

You close your eyes and calm yourself down while listening to Kagamis steady breathing, soon dozing off into a dreamless sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I've noticed I use a lot of monologues and I don't know if it is getting to much. Could you tell me how it feels while reading? I don't know to what extend I can and should define reader-chans personality.


	5. Cozy Breakfast Mornings

You wake up to feel warm puffs of breath hitting your face and something heavy weighing down on your stomach. As you open your eyes they meet with the sight of a still sleeping redhead lying on his belly next to you. A few strands of his fiery hair have fallen over his eyes.

You look from his pouting face to the arm that lies across your stomach, eyes gliding along the muscles adorning the limb, noticing slight twitches as they contract for just milliseconds. The warmth seeps on your skin through the fabric of Kagamis shirt creating a pleasant fuzzy feeling in your stomach. The shirt must have been pulled up a bit sometime during the night, because there are some spots where the skin of his arm touches the skin of your belly. The contact feels almost burning, as if Kagami was earths core itself, but it still sends a wave of tingles up to your heart.

_Why is he always so h-_

You stop yourself. 

_..hot?_

Shifting your gaze back to his face you actually look at it, paying attention to that defined jawline and noticing how these strong tendons connect the head to the torso.

Suddenly Kagamis Hand gets a tight grip around your hip pulling himself a little further towards your form. You grow stiff at that, interrupting your analysis. But as the seconds pass the tension in your muscles dissipates as you keep watching Kagamis peaceful face now lying a lot closer to you.

Not long after, the redhead seems to feel you staring, opens his eyes just to look at your face with a calm expression and a small smile on his lips. It throws you off a bit how much affection his stare holds as he regards your face as if it was normal for you two to wake up so close to each other like that. That is until realization seems to kick in, pupils getting into focus and the hazy look disappearing.

He let's go of your frame abruptly and scrambles backward out of the bed falling to the floor with a loud thump.

Glancing over the bedside you see Kagami covering his eyes with his arm, ears as red as his hair.

"Do I look that scary in the morning?" you say to ease the awkwardness of the situation and smirk down at him.

He uncovers his eyes, "No of c- you don't, I'm sorry. I guess I still move around like a baby in my sleep.." He averts his eyes, scratching his cheek. "Mom used to say I never put that habit down."

You smile at that and reach down to ruffle his bed hair. 

"Don't worry about it."

As you sit up and look around the room you notice that most of the other tenants already left the room, some having left their bed unmade as if they'd be jumping right back in there in a minute and others having left with their bed neat and tidy. One seems to be awake, scrolling through something on his phone with headphones on.

When Kagami looks at you it hits him like a train to the gut to see you in his T-shirt, which is way too oversized for you, only now seeing how its size swallows your frame. The sight of you in his clothing makes his chest swell with unfamiliar pride.

As you move to stand up his eyes travel along the exposed skin of your bare legs, making him try to imagine on how they would feel against the touch of his fingertips. Catching himself drawn to act on his thoughts, hand slightly lifted to reach for you, he withdraws it quickly moving it to the ground to lift himself off the ground. He turns around and walks to his luggage to lean over it and get his wandering mind to cool off.

As you gaze at Kagamis back while he's rummaging through his bag you decide that it's time to get ready for the day.

Feeling in need of a shower after instances of excessive sweating caused by the roller coaster ride of emotions you find yourself on more than ever recently, you grab your backpack with the emergency clothing and utensils in it to go looking for the girls showers.

"I'm gonna head off for a quick shower." As you swing the strap over your shoulder and the bag hits your backside with a thud you throw a glance at Kagami who seemed to be about to do the same, his change of fresh clothing hung over his arm.

"Yeah, me too."

Daring side of you taking the upper hand again as a smirk pulls at your lips and you hold your nose to let out a cheeky taunt, "Aye, you better."

Narrowing his eyes at you the redhead moves forward lifting his hand above your head. The second you attempt to lift your gaze to see what he's up to, his palm meets the top of your head to tousle up your hair so much that most of it falls into your face, causing you to see nothing but a curtain of your own (h/c) mane.

"Careful there, shrimp.", you hear his low rumble.

"Oi!"

The time you manage to get most of the strands out of your face you only catch a glimpse of Kagamis shirt as it disappears behind the door. Puffing your cheeks you rush towards it, leaning into the hall and looking in the direction your friend was leaving.

"Taiga!"

Craning his head around to look back at you, Kagami throws you a questioning glance.

"Did you take the key card with you?"

Holding it up between his index and middle finger the corner of his mouth lifts into a smirk, "Of course, I payed for it after all."

With a cringing face you look down the other way of the hall to make out any possible passer by or staff that might have witnessed and picked up on the underlying accusing tone of your assheaded friend. Releasing a sigh of relief at finding the hallway empty you turn back around to find mister Risky-Mc'Jokeface gone as well.

"I'm gonna get back at you for that." you grumble to yourself as you make your way in the direction of the showers.

Upon opening the glass door to the girls bathroom, your face is hit by humid air and your nose is greeted by the sweetest scents of all kind of shampoos and shower gels. Another wave of nostalgia hits you as you're reminded of your travels in Thailand but a flash of Kagamis disappointed face comes up in your mind. You note to yourself that you would be hitting him up with some your stories at breakfast. 

_Wouldn't have thought of it to be a big deal to him. But he's actually such sensitive boy behind that stern face of his. Just his resting bitch face._

Snickering to yourself you reach one of the shower stalls, getting in and starting to undress. Seems like there is no one else in the bathroom since all the other stalls are unoccupied.

You fold Kagamis shirt and boxer neatly and put them in your backpack for now. And maybe a while longer than just now. These clothing items were as good as yours from the second Kagami put them into your hand.

The door to the bathroom is suddenly pushed open loudly, startling you the slightest bit. 

"Pleease I really wanna go there again tonight."

You relax, as it seems to be just a couple of girls.

"You just want to have your second shot at mister sweet-talks from yesterday."

"Of course I do, but be honest, you enjoyed yourself quite as well with that brunette surfer boy."

"I would be lying if I said otherwise, have you seen his arms? I love it when you can see their veins so clearly. But you know that I am meant to meet up with my boyfriend today. He might get suspicious if I cancel our date."

A bile rises up in your throat at that. How is it possible for them to be so casually unfaithful to someone that trusts them. You don't know anything about the situation the girl is in nor do you know the boyfriend she's talking about. He could be doing the same to her, you wouldn't know. But what you're sure of is, that it wouldn't justify her acting unfaithfully.

"That boy is head over heels for you, don't worry about it. Say.. which lipstick, the dark or the intense one?"

"The cherry red for sure."

"a'ight."

You grit your teeth and busy yourself by getting everything you need into the shower with you, hanging your small towel in reaching distance. If you wouldn't you'd probably not be able to hold yourself back any longer and march out there to smack some sense into these girls' braindead heads.

"Yea that one looks sweet."

After a small click sound you can make out the shuffling of footsteps and the bathroom door being opened again. 

"But **_ugh_** I just can't stop thinking about how _good_ he smelled."

The sound of her voice quietens down as they seem to get further and further away from the showers, leaving you in complete silence again when the door closes shut. The sudden quietness makes you hear your thoughts all the louder with the last sentence of that girl leaving a sweet taste to linger.

It brings your thoughts back to the blue eyed stranger from yesterday. It seemed like he had just come out of nowhere. And though he didn't even ever address you in the 2 minute encounter with him, he has made such an impression on you that your thoughts seem to drift back to him over and over again. It feels strange to get over the fact that you'd probably never be going to see this mysterious man again.

You turn the knob with a squeaking sound making the shower head splutter to live and letting icy water fall onto your heated head.

You couldn't even pinpoint on what exactly he smelled like. Some mixture of something musky and fresh like the sea.

_And his eyes. Those blue ocean like eyes. Why is it so hard to forget them?_

You shake your head, deciding on shoving these thoughts aside for now. Kagami is probably waiting for you by now.

When you are done and step in front of the mirror, you notice hairdryers being attached to the wall behind you. Contemplating about using them, you brush your hands through your strands thinking that it would be best to not let any heat get to them and just let them dry naturally. Sometimes you had the feeling that this way the smell of shampoo was a lot more dominant.

As you leave the bathroom and step into the hallway you start to search for the dining room. Checking your phone for any messages from your redheaded friend the smell of freshly baked rolls reach your nose.

_**Tigger** : -I'm waiting for you at breakfast._

You follow the heavenly smell and find Kagami already sitting at one of the many round tables in the rather large hall. This hostel seems to actually have breakfast included. Now the slightest feeling of a bad conscience starts to weigh down on you. Karma is surely going to get you for that. Might as well make it worth it and enjoy a nice breakfast.

You creep over to Kagami and get your hands in his fiery hair to get revenge for what he did to you before. After giving him a good rub all across his scalp you walk around to get a look at the result of your uncommon hairstyling technique. 

Your face falls in disappointment, when you notice that he just looks like always.

"I didn't even make a difference, I'm so mad right now.", you sulk.

Kagami can't hide his grin, "But I enjoyed it, almost felt like a massage."

"Well it was not supposed to be one." you give a laugh yourself at that and continue, "Did you wait long?"

"Enough to make me drink two cups of tea already."

"Owie, sowwy~" you bat at him through your lashes as he moves to stand up. You spin around and start to wobble dance towards the buffet table.

"Why does it feel like you don't really mean it?"

You crane your head back, "Uwhat? I'm being sincere here." You laugh.

"Very believable with you cackling like that."

When you reach the table you notice the rather big selection with various offers of food from different cultures. 

_Wow. Now I do feel bad. Karma is gonna fuck me up so intensely._

You let your eyes wander over the long buffet, decorated with dried twigs and cherry blossoms. Your sight falls onto the muesli section. 

_Woah yess~_

Skipping over to it you prepare yourself a medium bowl, not taking the large one as not to anger the dear karma god any further.

Kagami comes up beside you with his plate.

"You know stealth mode is not one of your strongest abilities. You stick out like a peacock with your dancing around."

"Aw chill, I'm just getting into the mood of the day."

"That mood being dancing?"

"Yesh."

"Well than let's hope that your dancing mood doesn't blow your cover as a lawful tenant."

You tense at that and look around for possible staff in earshot.

"hushh"

Only now you notice several burger patties pressed between bread buns on his plate.

"You really can't make it one day without eating burgers? You're gonna die from a heart attack at young age, if you keep that up, boi."

As you talk you make your way back to your table, sitting down and happily diving into your meal. Kagami sits down on the stool opposite you.

"Hey these ones are kind of self-made, so it's healthy."

"uh-huh."

You roll your eyes at his excuse but make a mental note to mention this the next time he goes for fast food.

That's when you remember that you wanted to tell him about your Thailand adventures and the cue word being food makes you think about the night markets in Chiang Mai.

"You should visit the many markets in Thailand if you ever find yourself in Asia. You'll love streetfood. Do you know that night markets are a thing there?"

Kagamis cheeks are puffed from the food in his mouth but his eyes tell you that you got his full attention as he shakes his head 'no'.

"You can buy a lot of things there, the goods range from clothing items to antiques and musical instruments. I even got a real thai massage once, it was so spontaneous."

"Whua- you got a massage there?" beside the confusion of getting a thai-massage in the middle of a buzzling market, Kagami feels the tip of his ears grow warm as pictures of you lying on a bench with only a towel over your body threaten to come up in his mind. He thinks of a question quickly to escape his lewd thoughts, "Isn't that kinda awkward with people walking and chattering around you?" 

_I should stop having these thoughts about her, I feel like a creep.. But I can't help it._

You don't notice the slight pink hue on Kagamis face as you laugh and try to explain to him how these massages usually go.

"It's not like you're kneaded there in plain sight with loads of people passing by. The masseur where I got mine had a stand on the market right in front of his studio, so when I booked half an hour I had the full level of privacy being led into the massaging rooms. It was very welcomed after having explored the city over the day."

"Oh Ok. Yeah, sounds nice. I've never had a thai massage."

"OOookeh, we're so gonna treat ourselves with one soon."

You take another spoonful of your bowl and munch away happily, a thoughtful smile on your face as you imagine the redhead squirming under the hands of a professional masseur. He will surely be surprised what muscles he is going to feel that he never even thought were there. At least that's what you thought while getting your first thai procedure. 

"I got another funny story for you from my visit to Lopbury, the city known for its population of monkeys-"

Sudden clanking sounds, making you stop midsentence and and look to your side. A quiet handsome man, probably around your age, has stopped right next to you with his breakfast bowl in one hand. He has his eyes closed with the other hand ruffling through his raven hair.

"Hey sorry to disturb you two, but looks like my friend ditched me and went out for the day without me."

He opens his eyes as his gaze settles on yours and you feel struck by the stormy grey of his irises. Beside the captivating beauty of them, there lingers something else inside that makes your insides turn around in uncomfortable ways. But you decide on ignoring the strange feeling, because he seemed kind and there was no reason to be rude to someone you just met.

"I'd hate to sit alone, do you mind if I take my seat here with you two?"

His eyes shift to Kagamis at that, a slight glint flashing in them which you don't catch and a smile pulling at the corner of his lips, almost looking like a smirk. 

Kagami returns the look with it increasing in its intensity by the second and the atmosphere starts to feel statically charged. Until the redhead opens his mouth to speak in a calm tone, "Yea, no problem."

The raven haired stranger gives an even bigger smile at that looking more sincere now and sitting down between you and Kagami. The heavy blanket that seemed to have been weighing down on the conversation lifts up as his voice picks up an octave and he introduces himself. 

"Thanks! But where are my manners, I haven't even properly introduced myself. The name's Takao Kazunari. Nice to meet you two." He even gives a light tap on both yours and Kagamis shoulder at that.

You welcome the change in the air around you three and give a smile in return, "No worries, my name is (l/n) (f/n). Nice to meet you too."

"Kagami Taiga."

As you three eat, Takao keeps on talking, throwing questions at you here and there with Kagami keeping more to himself enjoying a second and a third serving of burgers.

"So what is the reason for you two to sleep in a hostel like this?"

"Oh we just arrived in Tokyo by train yesterday after traveling the whole past two days from the states."

"The states? You both came here all the way from the US? Crazy, I've always wanted to go there."

You grin at him. "Yes, Taiga wanted to abandon me there like the heartless guy he is." You look at your redheaded friend to gauge his reaction. He gives you a disapproving look and a head shake.

"But you are travelling a little bit on the light weight side if that is all you got on you as luggage." He notices as he looks at your backpack.

A glum expression overtakes your features as you think of the bag thief from yesterday.

"Well, Taiga got his bag in his room still, but mine got stolen yesterday." You miss the flash of emotion in the other males eyes as you look down on the table. But as you look up again there's nothing but sympathy showing in his eyes.

"Daamn, that hella sucks. You should take that to the police, they might be able to help you."

You look towards Kagami, "Yeah, we might as well try that." The redhead gives a reassuring nod at that.

"But hey, even if your bag doesn't show up again, think about how everything in there is probably replaceable and how good it is that nothing worse happened to you two."

You nod at this. He makes a very quirky impression making you wonder where that feeling you had earlier might have come from. You rarely misjudge people but seems like you made a mistake this time. Anyway, you always found it to be a good thing to get to know new people. 

He starts to explain to you how he ended up with his friend in the near of the riverside hostel, with his bike braking down in the late evening. Takao is a very enthusiastic talker, making wild gestures to his stories. But suddenly, one time when he makes a quick movement of his hand, he knocks your mobile phone off the table. It falls on the soft flooring with a silent thud.

"Ahh, Gomen nasai!"

You both instinctually reach for the phone on the ground at the same time until it is too late and you bump your heads against each other. 

You both laugh it off as he holds out your phone, your display lighting up from the motion. "Sorry about that but hell, you smell sweet!"

You avert your eyes at that, blushing slightly. 

"Uh thanks and.. no worries." You take your phone back out of his hand with his fingers brushing over yours for just a second. You are too overwhelmed by the situation that you don't see the glare Kagami is sending the male beside you. The latter either doesn't seem to notice or care enough to acknowledge the redheads annoyance. 

So he just continued his story telling by picking up from where he left off, "But anyhow, when I woke up my friend was just gone, leaving me all alone by myself- speaking of him, if you find yourself talking to a rude and walking carrot, that most certainly is my friend! Hahaha, he hates it when I call him that." As his story comes to an end, you notice that everyone finished their breakfast. 

Takao notices as well and throws a quick look to the clock. 

"Welp I gotta go. Might as well search for my walking carrot. Was nice to sit with you guys, see you 'round~"

And with the wave of a hand he's gone.

"Wow, that goodbye was kinda sudden. But that guy was nice to have around, very talkative."

Kagami shifts in his seat to stand up and take his empty plate with him.

"A bit too talkative for my liking."

You follow him, bringing your bowl along as well.

"Hey, I thought we where past your grumpy part of the morning already."

You stop walking when you feel your face being squished by a large hand, blocking your view. 

"I'll show you grumpy, you tiny trouble maker." You can hear the smirk in Kagamis voice as he rubs his palm over your face. You try to get your hand on his.

"Eh? Why am I a trouble maker all of a sudden?"

The hand lifts off your face and all you see is the redheads back as he makes his way over to the kitchen opening where they collect the used dishes.

You smile and dismiss the thought of Kagami being grumpy. 

_He was probably just hungry, that's why he wasn't as talkative._

After getting rid of your dishes you and Kagami head outside to start the day. Your first stop being the nearest police station to make a report of the thief that stole your beloved bag and goods. Though you didn't have a lot of information on his appearance beside his approximated height and clothing from that day. 

When you leave the station, you feel like having a small snack, that's when you remember Murasakibaras sweets. As you dig for them through your backpack your redheaded friend speaks up beside you,

"We should have a look at the bulletin-board in one of the malls around here. They might have some apartments for rent hung up on that."

You hear plastic crumbling as your fingers grasp the package of sweets and you pull them out of your bag. Holding it open you offer some to Kagami. With hidden anticipation you await his reaction, after he put the sweet candy in his mouth. After a few seconds, his eyes open wide as he looks back at the package and then at you. 

You can't help the giggles that leave your mouth because of his cute and flabbergasted expression. He points at his mouth, keeping it open slightly and throwing you a questioning look. 

"Yeah I hear that too." You say laughing, popping one of the candies in your mouth.

"These are awesome. Let me have another one. When did you get these anyway?" He gives you a questioning glance not remembering going to the store with you yesterday.

"I got them from Atshushi yesterday."

"Ah that purple haired giant? He seemed like a chill guy."

You put the plastic package back into your backpack to save some for later. 

"Yes he surely is. Kind of like a gentle giant."

You two soon reach the mall after a bit of walking, regarding the notice board in hopes of finding a cheap deal. Writing down some well promising contacts you make your way outside to make several phone calls and schedule appointments to view the different apartments.

None of the landlords had enough time on their hands to make an appointment for today but it wasn't much of a bother for the both of you. You decided to explore the city for the day and take a hotel room in the evening.

As you keep walking through the buzzing streets you remember something.

"Oh! I wanted to tell you about Lopburi."

"Yes until that Cocoa guy came up." Kagamis gaze wanders over the various posters and street signs hanging out over the sidewalk, a sudden look of disinterest taking place on his features.

"I think his name was Takao."

His arm brushes against yours as he shrugs. "You know how bad I am with names."

"Yea that is definitely true", you earn an unamused glance at that, "but that makes me think about how you never seemed to have problems recalling my name when we met~" Your voice reaches a teasing tone at the end of your sentence. But when you look up at Kagami the sour look lifts off his face and his features turn soft, a small smile playing around the corners of his lips.

"Because you intrigued me a lot more than most other people do when I meet them." He craned his neck to look down to you, "I think it's your authenticity that got me." The smile he wears seems so sincere that it feels like you're looking at the sun. The heat that comes to your face enhances your thought, even though it isn't like the heat is caused by Kagami and rather by the blood rushing to your cheeks.

He lifts his hand to pat your head, "And don't forget that you practically adopted me on your first day at school, because I certainly won't."

The slight flush of embarrassment dies down at the affectionate gesture making you sport a gentle smile, "Well after watching too many videos on youtube with people having their own pet tiger to cuddle I secretly wished to adopt one myself. So I took the chance that presented itself to me, when I found the lil' cub completely unattended and left to sit alone by himself in the cafeteria." You have to stand on your toes and reach up high to get a grip of his cheek between your thump and index finger, pulling slightly to annoy him further.

But Kagami doesn't seem that bothered, taking your wrist in his hand making you release his skin. His calloused hand feels warm around it as he guides your hand to his mouth when a playful glint flashes across his ruby eyes. You open your mouth to question his moves but you let out a yelping sound instead when he bites down on your index finger.

"Hey what the fuck?" You cradle your hand and violated finger to your chest, giving a pouting glare. Kagami can't help but laugh when he sees your offended face. As he calms down and looks back at your face again he gives a shrug of his shoulders. "Hey that's what tigers do, you should have known what you were getting yourself into while adopting one."

You shake your head at his awful attempt to defend himself, "But you made such a well behaved impression when I sought you out! Maybe I should reconsider this adoption thing and abandon you on the doorstep of the next animal shelter." Making a thoughtful face and looking forward on the walkway, seeing a sign that gives directions to a park nearby. "Aye let's go there, maybe they got some ice cream or some nice stuff waiting for us." With a grin and arms held high in the air, you turn down the junction that follows the directions to the green area.

Kagami follows you as his gaze settles on your enthusiastic form. The pink tint of his cheeks seems to have gone completely unnoticed by you as one of your sentences from earlier has left a sweet taste on his tongue. 

_"people having their own pet tiger to cuddle I secretly wished to adopt one myself."_

A gentle smile blossoms on his face, as he allows himself a short moment to believe that there might be the slightest of chances for you two to become something more than just friends.


	6. Big Time Trouble

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> The shit I've been keeping in the palm of my hand finally hits the fan.

"You really do eat a lot recently."

You give your (flavor) ice cream cone another lick before you turn sideways to puff your cheeks at your friend.

"Hey I only had a medium bowl of muesli this morning."

The redhead shrugs at that, "Not my bad."

"Well, you might be right but that was actually intentional," your voice drops to a whisper, your eyes drifting around carefully as if you were looking out for someone, "as not to get any further on the bad side of the karma god."

"I believe, once on the bad side there's just that. No going 'further' or some shit like that." His harsh words create small bubbles of anxiety in your lower rib cage. 

"No don't say things like that! What have all the good deeds been for that I've done? I gotta have some good-karma credit points on my account."

"Well certainly not for free scum bagging. And what good deeds would that be?"

"Don't you remember the time I cared for you when you were down with a cold? And I'm not a scumbag!" ,you cry out comically but your protests fall on deaf ears.

"You made 'me' a hot water bottle only to get under my cover and hug it to yourself because you were cold. And a few days later you were down with the cold."

"He- wait! It was really cold in your room and I made you some tea as well and I-uh.. I only took a few sips from that."

You watch Kagami as he takes out some tissue from his bag and notice how his movements halted for a few small seconds before he resumed his motions in turning to face you

"I'm kidding. I know that you're a good person at heart."

When the redheads gaze falls upon your face you're hit like a brick to the stomach with a load of emotions by just looking into his deep red orbs.

You're too focused on the tenderness in Kagamis eyes that you barely notice him inching towards you with his hand to wipe a splotch of ice cream away from your cheek. He withdraws and turns around to throw the used tissue into a trash bin as you just stand there. You lift your hand and touch the now clean cheek only to feel its slightly increasing warmth.

You drop your hand and turn back into the direction of the walkway with Kagami settling next to you in a leisurely pace.

He wears a small smile until he hears you murmur,

"Well I'm trying my best.. at least I think so. Or could it be that I'm actually a bad p-"

A muscular arm that you've grown so familiar with but at the same time is starting to make you feel so very uneasy wraps around your shoulders and pulls you to the redheads side. You look up towards Kagamis face, the ring that hangs around his neck tapping on his chest with each step you both take. You catch yourself trying to catch a glimpse of his red hues to just maybe be able to see that tender look from before again. But your sight is only met with a well defined jawline as Kagami is keeping his gaze forward on the paved road through the green area. 

As you revert your eyes from his jaw to face the direction you two were walking into you make out a low rumble from the chest beside your head.

"I meant what I said and I know it is true. You don't know how different you are from all the others."

~ Kagamis POV ~

He watched you struggle to explain how you **got to have** some credit on your personal 'karma account'.

"Don't you remember the time I cared for you when you were down with a cold? And I'm not a scumbag!"

He fights hard to keep the upcoming grin down to a minimum when he notices the drop of ice cream on your cheek while you keep wailing about your good deeds. He remembered that his mother told him to pack a package of tissues for these kind of 'small emergencies'. Call it mothers instinct or something. As he starts fishing for said package he answers to your protests,

"You made 'me' a hot water bottle only to get under my covers and hug it to yourself because you were cold. And a few days later you were down with the cold."

It's really hard for him to fight the grin that threatens to overtake his features now as he listens to your reply,

"He- wait! It was really cold in your room and I made you some tea as well and I-uh.. I only took a few sips from that."

He halts in his movement as the memory flashes in front of his inner eye.

_You seemed particularly tired from school that day and the fact that his home was still the first of your destinations right after your last lesson ended made him question his own good deeds once again._

_You've been so tired that you could barely construct well structured sentences, still you disappeared from his bedside out the door of his room to prepare a hot water bottle and tea for him. When you returned he saw how you kept holding the bottle close to your body already to absorb all the warmth it could offer. After taking a sip from supposedly his tea and placing it on the bedside table, you lifted his blanket up slightly exposing him in his tank top and sleeping shorts as you let out a gasp and started scolding him in a slurred way, still tired from school, for not dressing appropriately since he was sick and all. But you settled in bed next to him any way which made him tense up all over since you two have never been this close before. After getting comfortable and turning to face him you pressed the hot water bottle to his abdomen._

_The sudden warmth was a very welcomed sensation on his skin and he started to relax to some extend. When he averted his attention from the warmth of the water bottle on his belly back to your face he noticed that your eyes were shut and realized that you probably drifted off to sleep. His red orbs caught you still shivering from the cold and for a small moment he thought about inching closer towards you. But after a small time of contemplating that move he refrained from that and moved his hands to push the hot water bottle towards you instead. In your sleep deprived state you clung to the object that offered you sudden warmth reflexively and snuggled deeper into his soft blankets. He doesn't know how long he'd lain there for, just watching your serene expression until drifting off into a comfortable sleep himself._

As his mind comes back to his task at hand he's unaware of how much emotion he's showing through his facial expression and continues your conversation.

"I'm kidding. I know that you're a good person at heart."

And with that, his arms seem to have a mind of their own and when he notices what he's done he remembered that his plan was to simply hold the tissue out for you to take. He quickly averted his eyes and turned around, glad that there was a trash bin nearby.

After getting rid of the used tissue he saw you a few meters ahead already and jogged up to fall in step with you. A small smile comes to his lips as he thinks about how easy it was for him back there to just act on his instincts. Maybe he should try that more often? You didn't seem to mind.

"Well I'm trying my best.. at least I think so. Or could it be that I'm actually a bad p-"

His train of thought crashes when he hears you talk and decides to interrupt your wrong accusations of yourself by throwing an arm over your shoulder.

"I meant what I said and I know it is true. You don't know how different you are from all the others."

He was keeping his gaze settled on the walkway, too unsure if he could handle your reaction to his honesty and sudden change in behavior. But the way you just gave a small hum and made no move to back away from under his arm brought peace to his troubled mind. 

_I'm so fucking confused, should I really risk our friendship by making moves like these? Maybe she doesn't say anything because she's afraid to do so._

With that thought in mind the redhead lets his arm fall from your shoulders slowly, feeling a little less warm after doing so even in the warm early summer weather.

~ Your POV ~

You let out a thoughtful hum feeling butterflies circling in your stomach while Kagamis sentence resounds in your head over and over again. 

_how different I am from the others?_

_from **all** the others.. what does that mean? And in what way am I different?_

You are pulled from your thoughts when you feel Kagamis arm slip from your shoulders making you miss the pleasant weight in an instant. But you played the disappointment off with another thoughtful hum while tapping a finger to your lips.

"Maybe we should look around the area for a bit? Better now than later. Knowing the shortcuts can and probably _will_ come in handy one day."

Kagami gives a nod to your suggestion and you two steer your way out of the green area.

After walking around for a while you couldn't help but notice how many tall buildings and shopping malls there where even though you were currently just walking around the outskirts of Tokyo. You can only imagine what it's going to be like in the center of said capital. Probably feels like being a mouse trapped in a maze made of cardboard boxes. The thought makes you shiver.

Kagami seems to have noticed you shaking slightly when he speaks up,

"Are you cold?"

You lift your eyebrows as you two turn into a smaller alleyway.

"Aw no, I was just thinking about how I would probably feel in Tokyo. Being enclosed by all these huge ass buildings and all."

"Probably like a rat in a maze."

Your face scrunches up in amusement at that,

"Well I was more thinking of feeling like a mouse since they're a bit cuter but ok, you can be a rat if you want to."

You look to the end of the alley and stop as you see a man clad in black standing in the middle of the exit. Your amused expression falls and you suddenly get an extremely bad gut feeling about this.

Kagami seems to feel the same as he wraps a protective arm around you and pulls you closer to him with his hand on your waist.

Though it was not the way how Kagami would usually hold you, this one felt right in that moment, and you silently thanked him for taking some of your anxiety away.

"Taiga, let's go the other way.." But as you avert your eyes to the entrance where you came from you pause to see another man in black standing there.

_When did he.._

As you stand a lot closer to him than to the other man, you can make out some of his facial features from under his black fedora such as his light grey hair and dull grey eyes. When his gaze meets yours you can not help the shiver that creeps up your spine. Kagami senses your tension and starts to stand in front of you pushing you behind him.

The grey eyed man just stares at Kagami not making a sound nor move.

The sounds of footsteps reach your ear but before you can even think about them you are being grabbed by both wrists and ripped away from Kagami.

You feel yourself being spun around and fall into a well build chest being greeted by strong arms accompanied with the smell of cigarettes. Your cheek is pressed to the chest of your assailant, not being able to catch a glimpse of his face. All you can make out about him is his heartbeat. It is slow and even.

Normally the sound of a calm heart would be one to lull you to sleep, but right now under these circumstances the sound repulses you making your urge to regain personal space to become stronger than ever.

This man is as calm as a bomb and the fact that he manages to stay this casual in a situation like this makes the feeling of danger that he emanates grow even stronger, with it seeping into your body and making your own heartbeat grow faster.

Kagami turns around staring at the man that had stolen you from his side with murderous intent. If your vision wouldn't be limited to the sight of the brick wall that enclosed the alley, you'd be able to see the stance your protective friend has taken up, seeming like he was ready to pounce onto the mysterious man. 

"Look at you all worked up like a cornered tiger. You better not act on stupid thoughts that very likely swarm your fly brain right now.", the rumble of his deep mocking voice vibrates against your cheek and you can't do anything about the third shiver that climbs up your spine this day. As you squirm around for a second the arms that hold you press you even harder against this well build torso.

You think you hear a low chuckle, almost too silent to hear before he leans down to your free ear letting out a low whisper,

"...(Cup-size)."

Your eyes go wide at that,

"w-what?"

Another chuckle follows, a little louder than the first one.

"I wouldn't have thought that you'd be so cute, birdbrain would jump anyone that has a hole between their legs and would let him hump."

_Birdbrain? what?_

"But you? I might take you with me so you can show me if I guessed them right. I'm fairly good at it."

"That's not on the schedule." The other man intervened. He seems not as interested in pestering you and Kagami as much as his colleague does. But what exactly is the reason for them to corner you two in such a way in an alley? And going so far as to harass you like this.

That's when Kagami speaks up, "If it is money that you want, you can have all you want."

"Oh but I think what you're able to offer is barely enough to make up for your silly mistake."

He raises a hand to play with a strand of your hair. You wince and press your eyes shut. A shushing sound comes from above your head.

Kagamis eyes follow his every move, muscles growing tenser by the minute.

"What are you talking about?" The anger in Kagamis voice is clear. You can only imagine the look he must be giving them both.

The man lets out an annoyed sigh. 

The hand that has been patting your hair moves away as he seems to fish for something in his pocket. His movements halt after a few seconds and you hear a sound that you can't put a finger on to what it could belong to. It sounded like something small flinging open really fast.

_Don't let it be a knife, don't let it be-_

Your prayers have fallen on deaf ears as you feel a cold metallic blade pressed against your cheek. The anxiety you were feeling until now is nothing compared to the fear taking over your entire being now. You can't tell if you are feeling too hot or too cold.

A hand removes the hair from behind your ear, revealing the area of skin.

"You know," the knife turns with its sharp edge now lying on your skin, "the area behind the ear shell is a very sensitive one." The knife glides over your skin from your cheek down over the edge of your jaw and up towards the back of your ear. You shut your eyes and did your best to hide your panic-stricken expression from Kagamis sight.

"There's a lot of nerve endings running beneath the skin in this spot. But they're positioned individually in everyone."

"Please don't hurt her." Your heart breaks at hearing the defeated tone in Kagamis voice. But you cower when your captor lets out a sudden yell.

"You better let me do the fucking talking!" the man takes a small breath to probably calm himself a little. That yell surely caught attention of other people nearby. At least you hoped so.

_I'm never going to fuck over hostel receptionists ever again._

Your small moment of self humoring is cut short when you feel the pressure of the knife increase, threatening to cut your skin. Your eyes shoot open and you get a quick intake of breath but a hand clamps down on your mouth muffling your surprised scream.

You hear movement and Kagamis angered voice, "let her go you-!"

You hear shuffling and a sud accompanied by a groan from none other than your dear friend.

"Sorry girly, but you gotta pay some for this idiots forwardness." You had barely time to process the words when you felt sharp pain as the knife's edge slices down behind your ear, creating a sickening scratching sound on the bone of your skull. Warm liquid rolls down from the cut, soaking the top of your shirt. The blade glides across your skin painstakingly slow. After seconds that felt like hours the sharp end lifts from your now damaged skin.

You hear heavy breathes from the ground, probably coming from Kagami but the man disfiguring your skin opens his mouth to spew more threats, "Do you want me to continue on her face?"

"That is enough now, dumbass." 

Grey-eyes again. Your captor lets out a heavy sigh that ends with a low chuckle.

"Wouldn't want to ruin a pretty face like that one anyway."

Your hear shuffling from behind again which tells you that Kagami has probably moved to stand back up.

"So since you fucking double eyebrowed imbecile don't know **shit** about the situation you brought upon yourself and little cuteface here, I'm going to kindly explain it to you."

You feel your world spin again before your chin is being clenched tightly and yanked towards the direction the other man stands, but the first person you see is someone that should be resembling your friend but you can barely recognize him.

The warm gaze of your beloved redhead, that you have grown so fond of has been replaced by a scorching fire ready to devour anything in its path. Everything about Kagami is so tense that you can see his muscles clench around his shoulders and arms, knuckles of his fist probably have started turning white minutes ago. And the aggression that his facial expression holds makes the anxiety you have been feeling earlier form into something different.

The feeling that climbed from the bottom of your stomach up to your rib cage and enveloped your heart in an icy hug was something close to terror.

You know, that you are not the target of Kagamis anger but seeing his burning glare was enough to make your blood run cold.

Averting your eyes from your friend they find the gaze of the other man and these empty eyes of his still feel like they can look right through you to the very core of your soul. But there was something in these dead eyes. Was there a hint of .. disappointment?

_No it is regret.._

You've always been good at putting a finger on other peoples emotion, so you are very sure about your guess.

_But what would there be for him to regret? Is he forced into doing this? If yes, he might become a valuable helper in this situation._

That man that was currently manhandling your face started his explanation, seeming completely unfazed by Kagamis murderous aura.

"That simp over there is the one you ran into a day ago. But the dipshit managed to pick up the wrong bag after losing hold of his own. A bag which was filled to the brim with snow. And believe me them snowflakes I'm talking about are not the ones you and your friends used to built little shit faced snowmen off a couple of years ago.",

his harsh and mocking tone only added to the constricting feeling around your rib cage. His fingers tighten around your chin as he inhales to continue,

"But guess what, when he brought the promised good back into our house we did not find any stuff to go skiing with in the bag, no. We found friggin' tangas and strings in there."

The thought of other men going through your private stuff and seeing your underwear flashes in front your inner eye and gives you the slightest blush, making you avert your eyes to the ground, away from the intense stare of the grey haired man. 

With a thud, a bag that resembles your stolen one lands in your field of vision. Your eyes focus on a small dot that your mother got on it by accident once with a sharpie.

_Yes, that really is my bag!_

"That sleazy guy at your breakfast table was not there by accident even tho he looks like one." The man still gripping your chin takes a moment at that to chuckle at his own joke.

"He was send to get useful information on you lambs that would come in handy, should the circumstances of the situation change. Our dear Mr. A is not just a pretty head. And here we stand with nothing but that bag full of useless shit and your knowledge of nothingness about the remaining of **our** fuckin' bag because you let some asshead go stealy-steal on you."

His gaze slides over Kagamis figure, "I wouldn't have bet my money on the thought that a man your statue would be someone to let himself be stolen from so easily. But seems like your muscles are compensation for what you lack in brain matter if you manage to lose someone carrying a huge ass bag like that one."

It angers you, that this man has the audacity to insult your friend like that. You know that the thief must have had an ace up his sleeve to have gotten away from Kagami. Besides that, you two are completely new to this area. The other person certainly has a way bigger knowledge about the layouts of this city than you both.

The voice of the gray haired man catches your attention.

"Get to the point, the passerby are getting suspicious." His eyes were no longer on you, but on the ending of the alleyway.

You hoped that someone would actually come and get you out of this fucked up situation.

"Well our little bird brain Takao was given a quite handy gift. So it took one picture of you with an old hag and about 60 minutes until he had name, location and relation to you of this person or should I say grandma?"

Your eyes widen. That could not be possible. How? 

A memory of Takao picking up your phone and handing it back to you comes up in your mind. Your phones screen lights up showing you with your grandmother, both smiling into the camera.

_He saw my background picture? But how could that possibly be enough to-_

"When I tell you that we possess the power and connections to end the life of that hag with the snap of a finger, you better not try us. Unless the fartbag doesn't mean anything to you anyway, I mean these can become quite expensive when they're nothing more than a pissing and shittin-"

"Shut u-mph"

You feel the man's hand on your mouth for a second time this day. 

"Hey hey, you really got some spunk in you to talk up like that after what I did to your ear," his voice drops to a whisper, "that's how I like them. Feisty," and just as quick as it fell, his voice rises up in volume, "but anyway. The thing is, you should put your pretty heads together to come up with plan and gather some fucking money. 100,000 Yen to be exact. Or it's gonna be a major bye-bye time for granny."

You feel a push forward and you stumble into the arms of your redheaded friend. You turn to watch the evil man leave only catching sight of his back. You let yourself sink into Kagamis embrace defeated until you hear this unlikable mans voice one last time.

"Oh and don't fret over your missing panties, you can always come back to the Rakuzan with me if you want them back.", he gives a wave over his shoulder, throwing a last glance your way.

He had grey eyes as well, with his being way more striking than the eyes of the other man. And you could make out the stubs of braided grey dreadlocks sticking out from under his hat.

_They both look so alike._

When you look towards the ending of the alley again, the man is gone. You turn around to look the other way but there's no trace of the second man. You didn't even hear him move. 

You just stand there for a minute trying to process what has happened. You can't believe that this is actually reality. But the wet spot on the neckline of your shirt screams the harsh truth.

As you contemplate everything that happened in the past 10 minutes you start to feel the shaking of Kagamis arms around your body. You move your head to look him in the eyes but your movement is stopped when your head is pulled into this all too familiar chest, his strong arms enveloping you in a strong hug almost too tight for you to breath and his musky scent that you've grown accustomed to embracing you in a soft blanket. 

It is almost too low for you to hear but you catch Kagamis voice in a broken whisper.

"I'm sorry."

The way his whispering breaks at the end of the sentence pulls the ground from under your feet. He sounds so guilt ridden as if all of this was his fault. You want to lift your head from his pecks to look at his face finally but he does not let you and continues to hold you close. 

So you refrain from struggling against his hold and move your hands in slow strokes across his back.

Though your voice was a little muffled by the arm in front of your face, you tried to take the feeling of guilt from your friend.

"Nothing of this is your fault."

You weren't sure if your words had their intentioned effect since Kagami did not budge from holding you close, but you didn't mind. You needed that hug as well after all.


End file.
